The present invention relates to system and method for supporting development of application windows and more particularly, to development supporting system and method which utilize a client/server system for an application constructed of the application windows using graphical user interface GUI controls. The invention also relates to a storage medium for support of application window development.
VisualBasic, Visual C++ of Microsoft Corp. and APPGALLERY of Hitachi Ltd. have been available as development supporting tools used when the application windows using GUI controls are developed, the application windows using GUI controls can be prepared interactively. For setting of properties of the GUI controls used in the application windows, a method has been used in which the properties are set by using GUI control property setting dialogues in respect of individual GUI controls as shown in "Preparation of Windows by a Form Editor" (APPGALLERY user's guide (3020-7-425), pp. 18-19).
Also available as a relevant technique is a method of changing the property of a GUI control used for an application window in dependence upon the property of a form corresponding to the window, as shown in JP-A-9-114621.
In conventional techniques, however, any method cannot be found in which properties common to GUI controls utilized in an application are controlled collectively and information about the common properties is set to the property of a GUI control utilized during application window development independently of other properties. Any method cannot be found, either, which can collectively change properties in respect of individual GUI controls.
In development of an application constructed of a plurality of application windows each using GUI controls, if application windows are prepared by a plurality of persons without settling properties common to the GUI controls used in the application, resulting properties of the GUI controls will differ from each other in conformity with preference of each person to make the application windows inconsistent. When the properties common to the GUI controls used in the application are settled to make outwards of the individual application windows consistent, a more consistent and easy-to-operate application can be prepared.
For the sake of making outwards of application windows consistent, a method is available in which application window specifications are designed before developing the application windows, values of properties owned by GUI controls used in the application windows are prescribed with respect of individual types of GUI controls, and the properties of GUI controls are set by making reference to the application window specifications with respect of the individual GUI controls used during development of the application windows.
Default values are settled for properties of GUI controls with respect of individual types of GUI controls pursuant to application window development tools used and when a GUI control is newly added to an application window, the default value is always set in the property of the GUI control, with the result that there occurs necessarily the work of re-setting properties of GUI controls by consulting the specifications. In this case, a user must independently set a plurality of properties in the GUI controls used, raising a problem that inconsistency with the specifications is liable to occur owing to human errors.
In addition, the change of properties common to GUI controls used in common to individual application windows may often take place during application development. In that case, the user must carry out the work of finding out of the individual application windows all GUI controls which are required to be changed in properties concomitantly with the change of common properties so as to re-set properties with respect of the individual GUI controls, thus raising a problem that each time that properties of the GUI controls used in common are changed, the user must repetitively apply a plurality of operations to the individual controls which consume much time.